Carmine

What: Carmine (CI 75470) is an aluminum and calcium salt of carminic acid. It is one of the most ancient natural dyes, derived from the shells of the female insect Coccus Cacti. It is commonly used to achieve bright reds and pinks in lipsticks. Coal tar based colorants, the synthetic alternatives to Carmine, can irritate lips, dry lips out and thus are very problematic.

Origin: Carmine may be prepared from cochineal, by boiling dried insects in water to extract the carminic acid and then treating the clear solution with alum, cream of tartar, stannous chloride, or potassium hydrogen oxalate; the coloring and animal matters present in the liquid are thus precipitated. Other methods are in use in which egg white, fish glue, or gelatine are sometimes added before the precipitation. The pigment can also be extracted from various microbes engineered for the purpose. (Wiki).